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Marylou Berg, Communication Manager, 240-314-8105
Mayor and Council Proclaim Olympic Day and Citywide Celebration
City of Rockville Celebrates Olympic Values and Ideals
Rockville, Md., June 18- The Mayor and Council of Rockville, Maryland, announced today that June 23 will be celebrated citywide as Olympic Day with a Proclamation reading and presentation at their meeting Monday, June 22 at 7 p.m.
The Proclamation will be accepted by Sean Stewart, Rockville native and Olympic Trial competitor. Stewart qualified for the Olympic trials for the 2008 Beijing Olympics and will be a sophomore at the University of Maryland where he is a member of the Terrapin Swim Team. Before Maryland, Stewart was the metropolitan champion in the 100 and 200 freestyle and captured the Montgomery County championship in the 50 and 500 free in 2008. Wootton High School named him the Scholar Athlete of 2008.
Mayor Susan R. Hoffmann said she is delighted to recognize Olympic Day in support of Chicago's bid for the 2016 summer games.
"Rockville is pleased to show its solidarity with Chicago, and municipalities across the nation, for a movement that seeks to bring about a more peaceful and better world. This observance will also bring attention to amateur athletics in Rockville, will encourage physical activity and keep our citizens physically fit and healthy," she said.
The United States Olympic Committee (USOC) celebrates Olympic Day annually with events at the Olympic Training Centers and official training sites, as well as coordinating activities with affiliated sport National Governing Bodies and multi-sport organizations. This year, through a partnership with Chicago 2016, Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley and the U.S. Conference of Mayors, Olympic Day celebrations have expanded to cities across the country. In each community, the program will encourage physical activity and promote the Olympic values of fair play, cooperation and respect for others. Chicago 2016 is the organization seeking the privilege to host the 2016 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
At the urging of Mayor Daley during the U.S. Conference of Mayors in January in Washington, D.C., Mayor Hoffmann joined mayors across the country in a collective pledge of support for hosting the Olympic and Paralympic Games in Chicago in 2016. Today's mayoral proclamation and the community's cooperative celebration with other cities will send a clear message to the International Olympic Committee that the City of Rockville and the United States of America support Chicago's bid for the Games. The 2016 Host City will be named on October 2, 2009, in Copenhagen, Denmark. Chicago is competing for this honor alongside Rio de Janeiro (Brazil), Tokyo (Japan), and Madrid (Spain).
Olympic Day is a worldwide commemoration of Baron Pierre de Coubertin's June 23, 1894, convening of the first International Olympic Committee meeting at the Sorbonne in Paris, and the founding of the Modern Olympic Games. National Olympic Committees throughout the world will also participate in the international celebration, with each Olympic Committee sending Olympic Day greetings to participating nations.
For more information, please contact Brenda Bean, deputy city clerk, at bbean@rockvillemd.gov or 240-314-8280.